The Israeli army declared a neighborhood in Hebron a closed military zone on Tuesday as an ongoing military offensive entered its eighth day. Witnesses said military vehicles entered the area and announced over loudspeakers that the zone was prohibited to residents.
Footage circulated by local media showed troops deployed through the streets, warning inhabitants that staying in the area was dangerous. Other videos shared on social media showed soldiers detaining a group of Palestinians.
The detainees were forced to place their hands on their heads before being escorted under heavy guard to an unknown location. The operation began on October 23 following a shooting attack that killed two Israeli soldiers and injured three others. The army subsequently killed the two attackers.
Forces imposed a military closure on Hebron and surrounding villages after the attack. Troops have seized Palestinian homes in the Jalda and Ain Deir Baha neighborhoods, converting them into military barracks and raising Israeli flags above them.
The Hebron Municipality said on Tuesday that 4,969 Palestinians from 780 families have been displaced by the operation. During the early days of the offensive, forces carried out forced displacement, demolished homes and commercial establishments, and destroyed local infrastructure.
The Palestinian Prisoners Club stated that forces detained 110 Palestinians in the Hebron governorate between Friday and Wednesday. The military siege and closures have also disrupted education at 66 schools, affecting 2,872 students.
Of those affected, 2,198 students remain under direct siege. Another 674 students have been forcibly displaced and cannot reach their classrooms.
Displaced residents have demanded an end to the military closure and the lifting of restrictions on their residential areas. They want to return home and resume their normal lives.
